PRRD warns against foreign terrorists in Mindanao
Foreign terrorists are lurking in Mindanao as the Islamic State (IS) has already established a foothold in the southern region, President Duterte warned Tuesday.
The President cautioned the nation about the imminent “ugly” situation arising from the threats posed by terror suspects that include Syrians, Arabs, Indonesians, and Malaysians.
“The ISIS has gained a foothold in the southern part of the Philippines. It’s a mix. But it has never
been a question or issue of religion. It never has been but it’s turning to be an ugly one,” Duterte said during the 116th anniversary celebration of the Bureau of Customs in Manila.
“Kasi nandito na [Because they are here] – the Syrians, the Arabs, the white Arabs, there are the dark Arabs, a lot of Indonesian and Malaysian terrorists there just waiting to – you give them the slightest reason. That’s the only thing. It has nothing to do with perpetuating in power,” he added.
Terror threat growing Southeast Asian defense ministers who met in Singapore early this week confirmed that terrorist threat facing Southeast Asia is growing as foreign fighters return to the region and pledged to improve cooperation to tackle militancy.
“We, the Defense Ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), note with grave concern the rise of terrorism in our region, perpetrated by individuals and groups with increasingly sophisticated and deadly tactics and weapons,” they said at the conclusion of their two-day meeting in Singapore.
“The scale and complexity of the terrorist threat faced by our region continues to grow with the influx of returning foreign terrorist fighters and cross border movement of terrorists.”
The ministers said they would also improve cooperation with external partners.
Last month, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Brunei, all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, signed an intelligence sharing pact “specifically for (combating) terrorism and radicalism” to ensure another incident like Marawi does not occur and prevent the region from “becoming like the Middle East.”
‘Our Eyes’ initiative Under the “Our Eyes” initiative, senior defense officials will meet every two weeks to swap information on militant groups and develop a common database of violent extremists.
While led by military forces, the intelligence sharing would “involve all parties,” including police.
All members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have signed up to the pact.
The group pledged to increase cooperation in July.
The push for a strengthened regional cooperation comes after insurgents aligned with the Islamic State laid siege to the southern Philippine city of Marawi last year.
That battle sparked alarm that as Islamic State suffered reversals in Iraq and Syria, it was seeking to create a stronghold in Southeast Asia, buttressed by fighters returning from the Middle East.
Dozens of foreigners – most notably Indonesians and Malaysians – were among hundreds of militants who seized large parts of Marawi and engaged in a ferocious battle with Philippine forces that left much of the city in ruins and more than 1,100 people dead, according to government figures.
Some of the foreign fighters are believed to have traveled to Marawi via the porous maritime borders of the Sulu Sea, next to Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
48 terrorists
The military said they have monitored 48 foreign terrorists allegedly recruiting and training members in Mindanao.
Maj. Gen. Fernando Trinidad, Armed Forces of the Philippines deputy chief of staff for Intelligence, some foreign terror suspects were assisting a local group in Saranggani while others were providing aid and training to Abu Sayyaf Group in Basilan, and Maute Group in Lanao del Sur.
Trinidad made the disclosure in trying to justify the military’s request for a year-long extension of martial law in Mindanao which the Supreme Court declared as constitutional Tuesday. (With a report from Reuters)